Imagine sitting alongside Harry, Ron, and Hermione in the Great Hall, feasting on the vast array of foods in a never-ending buffet – that is what the Wizarding World of Harry Potter has in supply.

           In addition to visiting Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, DanRadcliffe.co.uk got a taste of some of the best meals and drinks at the Harry Potter theme park in Orlando, Florida. Note that the foods, drinks, and overall menu are exclusive to the Wizarding World.

           First take a refreshing swig of Butterbeer, which can best be described as a fizzy mixture of butterscotch and root beer in one. It may sound like an odd combination, and even off-putting, but its combination, along with the thick creamy foam that sits atop the trick, is rather eye-opening in how quickly and easily it goes down your throat. There’s even a frozen Butterbeer, for those in need of a cold drink on a hot summer’s day down in Orlando. It’s thicker than the liquid form, but the buttery fizzy taste is not lost, and the foam is just as delectable. Avoid drinking the frozen Butterbeer too fast – which may be tempting – or you’ll be left with brain freeze! Both are drinks to be had for refreshments, but pumpkin juice is best served with lunch.

           Pumpkin juice is cold, and tastes strongly of cinnamon and the best-tasting pumpkin cookies imaginable. With every sip the combined taste of sweet cinnamon and pumpkin strengthens, leaving the die-hardest Harry Potter fan quenching for more.

           Those who drooled over the innumerable types of food out for display and feast in the Great Hall will finally get a chance to try it out at the theme park. There is a family-sized great feast, topped with four half-roasted chicken pieces, coupled with four ribs that sit besides a batch of roasted potatoes and vegetables, including carrots and potatoes. The chicken is juicy, not that salty, and flavourful, as are the vegetables. But be warned – as good as the food is, don’t stuff your face with it all at once like Ron Weasley does. You’ll want to take your time enjoying every bite of it.

           Other quintessentially British foods for the taking are Cornish pasties (ground beef and vegetables enveloped in a crescent-shaped thick pastry), shepherd’s pie (alike in the pasties with its ground beef and vegetable filling, but in a pie topped with thin waffle of mashed potatoes), and fish and chips (the fish have a crunch exterior coupled with moist and flaky meat, which can be dipped in tartar sauce for additional flavour). For younger Harry Potter fans, there are kid’s-sized meals including favourite fried chicken strips and fries. The park caters to vegetarian fans as well, including leek soup and roasted vegetable servings.

           And, of course, the most important part of the meal: dessert. The same strawberry and peanut butter ice cream Harry once slurped on in Diagon Alley will be shared with all Harry Potter fans. The sweetness of the strawberry complements the strong and slightly bitter taste of the peanut – kids will absolutely be begging for more.

Chocolate, always a weak spot for fans of all ages and sizes, are the foundation of the trifle (strawberry pieces layered with mounds of chocolate fudge), and Cauldron Cakes that Harry often buys for his friends on the Hogwarts Express (made of soft chocolate cake filled with gooey fudge, which is topped with a sugar chip and hard chocolate handle – and naturally, shaped exactly like a mini-cauldron).

Small bits of treacle fudge, made of some of Harry’s favourite food, consist of treacle (a bit like molasses and maple syrup), decorating and embedding a block of soft white chocolate. Pumpkin pie, warm apple pie, and some of Hagrid’s famous rock cakes (though thankfully edible and soft to the touch – clearly Hagrid had no culinary hand in the baking), complete the large selection of desserts. There is just so many rich chocolates and soft cakes to choose from that you can’t help but to want to try a bit of everything.

And yes, you’ll feel as though you just had a feast in the Great Hall with your favourite Hogwarts students.